![Lennon Beatle John Lennon and his wife, Cynthia, sit in London Airport, England, before flying to the U.S. on Feb. 7, 1964.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/cynthia-lennon.jpg?quality=85&w=2400)
Cynthia Lennon, the former wife of John Lennon and eyewitness to the early days of the Beatles, died in her home Wednesday at the age of 75.
Her death was confirmed by a publicist and on her son Julian Lennon’s Twitter page. She died in her home in Spain after a “short but brave battle with cancer,” according to a memorial page.
The Lennons met in art school before the Beatles got their start in Hamburg, and married in 1962 after Cynthia Lennon realized she was pregnant. Their marriage and subsequent birth of their son Julian was initially kept a secret, to avoid upsetting the growing Beatlemania, but Cynthia and Julian eventually got a front-row seat to the Beatles’ growing popularity in England and the U.S. The Lennons divorced in 1968, when John Lennon became involved with Yoko Ono.
Cynthia chronicled their marriage and her experience with the Beatles in two books, A Twist of Lennon (1978) and John (2010).
The Beatles Take America, 1964
![01052191.JPG John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr pose in a portrait on a black backdrop in January 1964](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/150126-beatles-01.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![BEATLES Two days after their U.S. TV debut on "The Ed Sullivan Show," the Beatles play for 8,000 fans at their first American concert, at the Coliseum in Washington, D.C., on February 11, 1964. Ticket price: $3.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/150126-beatles-02.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![558766.jpg The Beatles joke and smoke at a press date in August 1964.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/150126-beatles-03.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![00837472.JPG The Beatles wave to fans as they arrive at the Los Angeles airport in August 1964 for a press conference at the start of their second American tour.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/150126-beatles-04.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![THE BEATLES Police hold back a crowd of fans at the Los Angeles airport in August 1964.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/150126-beatles-05.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![558758.jpg Beatles concerts, like this American show in 1964, are noisy affairs where screaming crowds drown out the band.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/150126-beatles-06.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
![THE BEATLES John, Paul, George and Ringo in a (very, very cold) Miami swimming pool in February 1964.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/150126-beatles-07.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
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